Which denomination of Christianity is right?

[rockytopva]

And a perspective from our atheist friends...

Magic Mormon Underwear - YouTube

 

[razeontherock]

Since it was asked:

"According to Mormon writings (Pearl of Great Price, Joseph Smith - History 1:1-25), on a day in 1820, Joe was praying in the woods when he received a vision from God the Father and Jesus ...

Then, according to his own account (Pearl of Great Price, Joseph Smith - History 1:29-54), he was paid a bedside visit by the angel Moroni in 1823. Moroni, who professed to be the glorified son of a man named Mormon (who had been dead 1400 years), told Joe about a book of golden plates which contained "the fulness of the everlasting Gospel." This book was said to have been buried at Cumorah Hill, near Palmyra, New York, some 1400 years earlier by the man named Mormon. Four years later (1827), Joe supposedly dug up the golden plates along with a gigantic pair of spectacles which he called "the Urim and Thummim." The spectacles were for translating the hieroglyphics on the plates ...

Little known to most Mormons, Young was a rather rough and ruthless character. In 1857, he commanded Bishop John D. Lee to murder a wagon train of over one hundred helpless non-Mormon immigrants. Twenty years later Lee was convicted and executed by the U.S. Government. Young escaped punishment, and his role in the Mountain Meadows Massacre has escaped the Mormon history books ...

...God himself was once as we are now and is an exalted man and sits enthroned in yonder heavens..." (Journal of Discourses, V6, P3, 1844)
"As man is, God once was: as God is, man may become." (Lorenzo Snow, quoted in Milton R. Hunter, the Gospel Through the Ages, pp. 105-106)"

These are mere snippets from one source I skimmed over, here: The Plain Truth about the Mormons

Which is more than enough to make me not want to keep reading to find the specifics asked for. I omitted some things from it that attempted to be more direct, but were, IMHO, weak. Generally speaking, in answer to the OP, I would never point someone to LDS.

 

[chilehed]

With so many denominations to choose from, which one's the right one?

The one that's existed since the time of the Apostles.

 

[food4thought]

With so many denominations to choose from, which one's the right one?
Which one truly leads to God, or do they all or do just some of them?

Mine, of course

I know you were all thinking it lol

Oh wait... I belong to a nondenominational church

 

[talitha]

I think of Calvary Chapel as a denomination..... you don't?

 

[food4thought]

I think of Calvary Chapel as a denomination..... you don't?

It's big enough I guess, but I don't think Chuck Smith wants it that way, and there is a pretty broad spectrum of styles and emphasis in the different individual churches. I think as time goes by it will eventually evolve into it's own denomination, but for right now I still consider it to be a very large group of affiliated non-denominational churches.

 

[rockytopva]

All the denominations have had their issues... None is perfect. If there was one it would become imperfect as you walked through the door.

12.25 2060, Isaac Newton, and the Seven Churches - YouTube

 

[Xpistis sopheiaX]

Since no denomination is perfect I'm not really sure that denominations are important.

God works through imperfect people using imperfect tools (including language itself as an imperfect tool).

I think seeking God is more about you than it is about any church, denomination, scripture, or anything else. If you seek God humbly, I believe God will reveal himself to you in the way he chooses, and if you seek Him He will reveal what you need in a way you can understand.

Like our pastor said a few weeks ago: "God is beyond logic and beyond theology," which I agree with wholeheartedly.

 

[DCJazz]

I'm curious how a church that claims 6 million members in the US can be considered something other than "mainstream." As for rejecting the Trinity, the first article of the Mormon faith is: "We believe in God, the Eternal Father, and in His Son, Jesus Christ, and in the Holy Ghost." Mormons apparently use the word "Godhead" in place of "trinity," so it seems to me more a matter of semantics than anything else. Recall that there is no literal mention of the Trinity anywhere in the New Testament, so it seems a bit presumptuous to exclude a particular denomination for using its own terminology.

Mormonism isn't a denomination of Christianity. They believe Jesus and Satan were brothers, and that men can become God's of their own worlds, just as they believe God to have once been a man who became a God. And they believe in works-righteousness... that is, by being a 'good person' they can go to heaven... and depending on just how good you were, you might go to a better heaven than someone else. Sigh. There is just so much with Mormonism that is incompatible with the Gospel of Christ itself.

 

[DCJazz]

As for denominations itself, I wish we could be rid of them entirely. It's Christ who saves us, not any one denomination.

 

[Dorothea]

The answer can be found by seeking with a sincere and open heart and mind to allow Him to guide you to His Church.

 

[DCJazz]

Here's my advice. Don't worry about denomination too much right now... but do be careful of some religions saying they're christian, when they're not. Anyway, that advice:

Seek Christ first. Read the bible. If you don't know where to start, you could try one of the 4 gospels, such as Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John. Understand what it was that Christ did for you, and as you can see, you have a whole forum as a resource for this as well as the bible, so you won't be left wanting.

Denominations don't lead you to God. Only Christ can do that.